In development circles, there is now widespread consensus that social entrepreneurs represent a far better mechanism to respond to needs than we have ever had before--a decentralized and emergent force that remains our best hope for solutions that can keep pace with our problems and create a
more peaceful world.

David Bornstein's previous book on social entrepreneurship, How to Change the World, was hailed by Nicholas Kristof in the New York Times as "a bible in the field" and published in more than twenty countries. Now, Bornstein shifts the focus from the profiles of successful social innovators in that
book--and teams with Susan Davis, a founding board member of the Grameen Foundation--to offer the first general overview of social entrepreneurship. In a Q & A format allowing readers to go directly to the information they need, the authors map out social entrepreneurship in its broadest terms as
well as in its particulars.

Bornstein and Davis explain what social entrepreneurs are, how their organizations function, and what challenges they face. The book will give readers an understanding of what differentiates social entrepreneurship from standard business ventures and how it differs from traditional grant-based
non-profit work. Unlike the typical top-down, model-based approach to solving problems employed by the World Bank and other large institutions, social entrepreneurs work through a process of iterative learning -- learning by doing--working with communities to find unique, local solutions to unique,
local problems. Most importantly, the book shows readers exactly how they can get involved.

Anyone inspired by Barack Obama's call to service and who wants to learn more about the essential features and enormous promise of this new method of social change, Social Entrepreneurship: What Everyone Needs to Know(R) is the ideal first place to look.

What Everyone Needs to Know(R) is a registered trademark of Oxford University Press.


"Excellent!" --Nicholas Kristof, New York Times

"Order this book and read it immediately...This book gives you some great ways to understand and apply the whole idea of entrepreneurship/social entrepreneurship." --Tom Suddes, The Suddes Group, ForImpact.org

"The most essential starter guide to the field I've yet seen." --Change.org

"A great primer of social entrepreneurship, trends, and a look into the future." --Encouragizers

"This book is an excellent way to get a snapshot of everything going on in the Social Entrepreneurship space." --RisingPyramid.org

"Practical offer[s] concrete examples of the challenges faced by social ventures and shedding light on the issues that make social enterprises different from traditional businesses." --NextBillion.net

"The first to give an excellent overview of what being a social entrepreneur is all about. You'll learn what the difference is between a social entrepreneurship and a regular business venture and traditional non-profits. If you think you want to innovate unique social solutions to unique social
problems for your encore career, this is the place to start." --Lin Schreiber, founder of RevolutionizeRetirement.com